Type of disability

Every person with disability is unique. People can experience similar impairments very differently, and will have individual backgrounds, life experiences, and perspectives, interacting with social and cultural interpretations of (dis)ability. ^{2, 7, 21, 63, 68}

The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Survey of Disability, Ageing and Carers (SDAC) considers that a person has disability if they have at least limitation, restriction, or impairment that restricts everyday activities and has lasted, or is likely to last, for at least 6 months. Severity of disability is defined by whether a person needs help, has difficulty, or uses aids or equipment with self-care, mobility, and communication, and is grouped for mild, moderate, severe, and profound limitation. The groups identified in the SDAC are: ^{109, 110}

• sensory and speech (sight, hearing, speech)
• intellectual (difficulty learning or understanding)
• physical (includes breathing difficulties, blackouts, seizures or loss of consciousness; chronic or recurring pain or discomfort; incomplete use of arms or fingers; difficulty gripping or holding things; incomplete use of feet or legs; restriction in physical activities or work; and disfigurement or deformity)
• psychosocial (including nervous or emotional conditions, mental illness, memory problems, and social or behavioural difficulties)
• head injury, stroke or acquired brain injury
• other (restrictions in everyday activities due to other long-term conditions or ailments)

For 77% of people with disability, the main condition (i.e. causing the most problems) is physical. For the remaining 23%, the main condition is mental or behavioural, including: intellectual and developmental, such as intellectual disability and autism (6.5%); mood affective, such as depression (3.8%); dementia and Alzheimer’s disease (2.6%). ^{35, 109}

Disability type and the level of support required can explain some of the variation in participation seen across different populations and research projects. In a 2017 Australian study, the level of support needed by participants, was the most significant indicator of whether individuals were likely to participate, with those with higher support needs, less likely to participate. ⁶³

Data limitations

Limitations on data for persons with disability often include inconsistent data sources, small sample sizes, and mainstream data sources not including a disability ‘flag’. These limitations often lead to an inability to report on the experiences of people from different disability groups, as well as intersectional population groups (e.g. cultural or socio-economic status). ¹¹¹

From a sport perspective, this means it can be difficult to identify benefits, facilitators, barriers, good practice policies, and programs for people from different disability groups, or those with differing levels of limitation (e.g. research on people with intellectual disabilities, may focus on people with moderate impairment versus those with more severe impairments, or research on physical versus psychosocial disability groups). ^{7, 33, 63, 111, 112}

By increasing the availability of quality data and our understanding of different structural, social, and intersectional factors that may be impacting participants, the sports industry can help improve participation rates and experiences for all. ^{35, 63}

Resources and reading